Corks, and other bottle stoppers

[Anna Nelson]

I have officially corked my first 25 Bottles of wine. Fruit wines in small batches…irrelevant, except that they won’t age so long that they need the really expensive corks. I know it’s been 25 bottles because the package of corks I bought had 25 corks in it. That package didn’t say anywhere what size they were. I went to the liquor store where they sell some brewing and winemaking supplies and where I buy my supplies and they had NO corks. Supplier problems. I went online…size 8? Size 9? They seem to sell those interchangeably. I have a wonderful floor corker and “regular” wine bottles. How do I choose?

 

[Ohio Bob]

I have officially corked my first 25 Bottles of wine. Fruit wines in small batches…irrelevant, except that they won’t age so long that they need the really expensive corks. I know it’s been 25 bottles because the package of corks I bought had 25 corks in it. That package didn’t say anywhere what size they were. I went to the liquor store where they sell some brewing and winemaking supplies and where I buy my supplies and they had NO corks. Supplier problems. I went online…size 8? Size 9? They seem to sell those interchangeably. I have a wonderful floor corker and “regular” wine bottles. How do I choose?

I use #9 x 1 3/4” for all my wines. You can get by with 1.5” lengths if you want to take the risk, they are probably cheaper.

 

[Anna Nelson]

I use #9 x 1 3/4” for all my wines. You can get by with 1.5” lengths if you want to take the risk, they are probably cheaper.

Thank you. I like that approach- same cork.

 

[Jovimaple]

I use #9 x 1 3/4", as well. I have had 1 leak and 1 just tonight split when I was opening a bottle from Feb 2022.

I have used several hundred over the past 3+ years so at this point, I am satisfied with that cork.

 

[Rocky]

I have officially corked my first 25 Bottles of wine. Fruit wines in small batches…irrelevant, except that they won’t age so long that they need the really expensive corks. I know it’s been 25 bottles because the package of corks I bought had 25 corks in it. That package didn’t say anywhere what size they were. I went to the liquor store where they sell some brewing and winemaking supplies and where I buy my supplies and they had NO corks. Supplier problems. I went online…size 8? Size 9? They seem to sell those interchangeably. I have a wonderful floor corker and “regular” wine bottles. How do I choose?

Anna, in reading through your post, you talk about the size of the corks (length and diameter) you use but not the material from which it is made. All corks are not created equal. There are natural corks that are available in several "grades," agglomerated corks, combination of natural and agglomerated and Nomacorcs (and I may have missed other materials). IMO, they do not all perform at the same level. Can you tell us what material composes your corks?

I have gone through just about every type of cork over the years, starting with natural corks, then agglomerated, then the combination and now Nomacorcs. In all cases I use the #9 by 1 3/4" corks. Which one chooses has several drivers, e.g. how long one plans to keep the wine bottled, price, quality and reliability to name a few. I arrived at Nomacorcs in this manner: moved from Natural to Agglomerated due to price, moved from agglomerated to combination due to performance, moved from combination to Nomacorcs due to degradation of quality in the combination corks I was buying. I have been very satisfied with Nomacorcs, which I purchase in bags of 1000.

 

[winemaker81]

Definitely use #9 corks. Wine bottles have some variety in the interior diameter, and #8's may not seal as well. You've got a floor corker, so it WILL put the cork into any bottle.

1.5" vs 1.75"?

The science says 1.75" is better. But realistically? How long will you store your wines? If realistically longer than 5 years, then going with 1.75" instead of 1.5" makes sense. [I have 6 yo wines for which used Nomacorc 1.5" Select 900 corks which are doing fine.]

My unscientific take is that a large percentage of home winemakers finish the last bottle of a batch within 3 years. In this case I would not use a cheap cork, but neither would I use an expensive one. Middle ground makes sense.

Last fall I purchased a 1,000 count bag of 1.75" Nomacorcs as it was a great price. I'll use them in all wines, simply because I never count on how long a wine will be in my racks. At least 85% of any batch will be consumed within 5 years, whites much sooner, but I don't mess around with figuring out which cork to use for which wines.

 

[Smoke]

Do you absolutely have to have a floor corker with the #9’s or can you use a hand corker?

 

[Rocky]

Do you absolutely have to have a floor corker with the #9’s or can you use a hand corker?

You can use a double levered hand corker but it is a chore and you could end up destroying a few corks. I highly recommend a floor corker and I know they are pricey. Keep your eye on Craig's List. I bought two of the Portuguese models from Craig's list for very good pricing, i.e. around $20 each.

 

[winemaker81]

Do you absolutely have to have a floor corker with the #9’s or can you use a hand corker?

I agree with @Rocky. Sunday my son & I topped a barrel at his house, which required dividing a 4 liter jug into four 750 ml + one 375 ml bottle after topping the barrel. I used his double-lever corker to cork the topup bottles. I have one that I haven't used in 35 years ... I forgot how much I hate it.

If winemaking is an occasional thing or if you're new and not sure you'll want to do it long term, a double-lever corker is a good cost savings. OTOH, my small batches are 30 bottles and large batches are 100+ bottles, and I'd not do it without a floor corker.

If this is a long term thing for you, follow Rocky's advice and look for a second hand Portuguese corker.

Mine in the blue Italian model, which my son will hand down to his grandchildren (when he has children, which is a future event).

 

[Raptor99]

Do you absolutely have to have a floor corker with the #9’s or can you use a hand corker?

Based on the recommendations of many here, I decided to try #9 nomacorks. I have a double lever hand corker. I pushed 3x harder than I do for #8 natural corks, but could only get the cork about 1/3 of the way into the bottle. Getting it back out was a challenge.

The inside diameter of bottle necks varies slightly, so it might work with some bottles. But I won't be using #9s unless and until I get a floor corker.

 

[Raptor99]

Maybe a few people could share "best practices" when using #8 natural corks. I mean besides saying "You need to immediately buy a floor corker and get #9 nomacorks"

 

[winemaker81]

Maybe a few people could share "best practices" when using #8 natural corks. I mean besides saying "You need to immediately buy a floor corker and get #9 nomacorks"

Put the bottle on a sturdy table and use body weight to help push the levers down. Yup, being totally serious.

My son purchased a bag of agglomerated corks for the topup wine. They went mostly in (trust me that I have the body weight for it! ) with a bit sticking out. Very disappointing.

My double-lever corker, 40-yo and rusty, has a depth adjustment. My son's new one that he got with a set does not. Very disappointing.

 

[Rocky]

Maybe a few people could share "best practices" when using #8 natural corks. I mean besides saying "You need to immediately buy a floor corker and get #9 nomacorks"

Many years ago before I got a floor corker, I used the double-lever hand corker. I found if I put the bottle on the floor and captured it between the insteps of my feet to secure it, I could bend over and use enough body weight to insert the cork.

I just found this image online, illustrating the above:

 

[cmason1957]

Best advice I got about the double handed corker. From the owner of a LHBS. Throw it away as soon as possible. I don't use Nomacorks, but they are #9 x 1-3/4.

 

[Rocky]

Maybe a few people could share "best practices" when using #8 natural corks. I mean besides saying "You need to immediately buy a floor corker and get #9 nomacorks"

Raptor, here is what I mean about searching Craig's List in your area. This listing is for materials just outside of Detroit, Michigan.

https://detroit.craigslist.org/mcb/hsh/d/new-baltimore-wine-making-equipment/7724772339.html

If you look at it, the list of materials includes 4 glass carboys, 2 ea. 6 gallon and 2 ea. 5 gallon. There is also a Portuguese floor corker that looks brand new, a bottle tree for drying bottles and a bottle "spritzer" for K-meta plus a lot of the small "goodies" one needs in wine making. The equipment is described as "like new" and the price is $250 OBO. I would not be surprised, depending on the sellers motivation, that one could get this equipment for around $150, which would be a great price. I realize this location may not be practical for you, but it is an example of what is out there.

 

[Raptor99]

Put the bottle on a sturdy table and use body weight to help push the levers down. Yup, being totally serious.

I have arthritis in my shoulders, so that isn't an option for me. I don't want to put that much pressure on my shoulders. Using your body weight to press down transfers all that force through your shoulders.

Raptor, here is what I mean about searching Craig's List in your area. This listing is for materials just outside of Detroit, Michigan.

Yep, I've been watching Craig's List in my local area. No good deals so far.

 

[winemaker81]

I have arthritis in my shoulders, so that isn't an option for me. I don't want to put that much pressure on my shoulders. Using your body weight to press down transfers all that force through your shoulders.

Dang. Honestly, there's not much you can do other than get a floor corker. As @Rocky pointed out, a bit of searching may find what you need at a good price.

 

[Anna Nelson]

Thanks for the great discussion. I paid $71 for my floor corker - new. Seems like a great investment. My first bag of corks had a thin layer of natural cork on each end and ? agglomerated ? in the middle. The packaging was pretty useless - though it specified that they were for 5 years or less. In shopping for new corks, I lean toward the agglomerated for price. I cannot imagine we will be keeping bottles more than a couple of years - fruit wines and small batches - so I wasn't worried about the corks having to last too long. I haven't heard of "Nomacorks" - what is different about these?

 

[Anna Nelson]

Definitely use #9 corks. Wine bottles have some variety in the interior diameter, and #8's may not seal as well. You've got a floor corker, so it WILL put the cork into any bottle.

1.5" vs 1.75"?

The science says 1.75" is better. But realistically? How long will you store your wines? If realistically longer than 5 years, then going with 1.75" instead of 1.5" makes sense. [I have 6 yo wines for which used Nomacorc 1.5" Select 900 corks which are doing fine.]

My unscientific take is that a large percentage of home winemakers finish the last bottle of a batch within 3 years. In this case I would not use a cheap cork, but neither would I use an expensive one. Middle ground makes sense.

Last fall I purchased a 1,000 count bag of 1.75" Nomacorcs as it was a great price. I'll use them in all wines, simply because I never count on how long a wine will be in my racks. At least 85% of any batch will be consumed within 5 years, whites much sooner, but I don't mess around with figuring out which cork to use for which wines.

Thank you!

 

[winemaker81]

Thanks for the great discussion. I paid $71 for my floor corker - new. Seems like a great investment. My first bag of corks had a thin layer of natural cork on each end and ? agglomerated ? in the middle. The packaging was pretty useless - though it specified that they were for 5 years or less. In shopping for new corks, I lean toward the agglomerated for price. I cannot imagine we will be keeping bottles more than a couple of years - fruit wines and small batches - so I wasn't worried about the corks having to last too long. I haven't heard of "Nomacorks" - what is different about these?

If the vendor says 5 years, the corks are probably good for 7 years, as they have to worry about liability if the corks fail early. The primary Nomacorc customers are commercial wineries, and early cork failure could destroy the company. Under promise and over deliver. For your needs, they should be fine.

Nomacorc are an artificial material. I tried them because my storage conditions are not ideal and I had mold growing on the outside of the cork on about half the bottles. Nothing fatal, but very ugly.

Switching to Nomacorc solved that problem, and they have the advantage that they don't try out like natural corks, so the bottles can be stood up.